Virginia Beach Cub Scout will deliver game ball at Super Bowl XLVIII

When the Seahawks and Broncos take the field for Super Bowl XLVIII this Sunday, Cub Scout Thomas Brown won’t be watching from his couch like more than 100 million other Americans.

He won’t be sitting in the frigid seats at MetLife Stadium, either.

No, Thomas, a Cub Scout in Pack 14 from Virginia Beach, Va., will be on the field, holding the game ball that he’ll hand to officials before kickoff.

Thomas, 9, was selected from among thousands of entrants as this year’s NFL PLAY 60 Super Kid. He pledged to be active for at least 60 minutes a day and answered questions including “If you could tell your favorite team which healthy foods they needed to eat, what would you suggest and why?” and “What do you think your favorite player does to stay fit?”

He learned about the contest in Boys’ Life magazine.

Whether you’re rooting for Peyton’s team, Russell’s team, or neither, save some cheers for Thomas. He’s a Pittsburgh Steelers fan who wrote about his admiration for Troy Polamalu and how he remains a Steelers fan even as his military family moves across the country.

Thomas’ dad, Shannon, is an active-duty lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps and flies FA-18 fighter jets.

“Like other military families, my wife and boys have had to sacrifice a lot over the years during my deployments overseas,” Shannon said.

For winning the contest, Thomas has already enjoyed a dinner in Pittsburgh with Polamalu, a tour of the Steelers facility and a chance to meet Steelers president Art Rooney II, head coach Mike Tomlin, and players Maurkice Pouncey and Heath Miller.

This week, he’s in New York City to check out Super Bowl Boulevard, a “celebration of all things football.” There he’ll ride the 180-foot Toboggan Run in Times Square and open the NFL PLAY 60 portion of the Boulevard.

Tomorrow (Tuesday), Brown will be the first Super Kid to attend Super Bowl XLVIII Media Day at the Prudential Center. His activities will be videotaped by Nickelodeon, the official youth media partner of the NFL PLAY 60 Super Bowl Contest.

Then on Sunday, he’ll hand the game ball to officials right before the big game kicks off.

Not bad for a 9-year-old. Congrats to Thomas, and way to represent Cub Scouts everywhere!

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Bryan on Scouting is the official blog of Scouting magazine, a Boy Scouts of America publication. Scouting magazine is published five times a year and is received by 1 million registered adult volunteers.